[at-l] Lurking Down Under

[Steve Miller]

It's been quite a while since I last posted, and even then I was hardly 
a frequent poster.  I have an excuse, though.  Just under a year ago, I 
ended 12 months of unemployment accepting a job that had me working much 
of the time in Montreal.  For a few months!  Then, management asked me 
to work at the client's side in Sydney, Australia for one month.  That 
they extended to three months.  Then five months.  I'm now six months 
into a 10 month assignment!

As great as that may sound - having someone pay you to spend 10 months 
in a place you might not otherwise get to visit, it has a few 
drawbacks.  First, the wife and daughter are 10,000 miles away - she had 
her job and I chose not to disrupt schooling.  Second, just because they 
spent thousands of dollars to get me here, house me and feed me, the 
company actually wants me to do work Mondays thru Fridays, and even some 
weekends!  Third, I'm living in downtown Sydney, and I hate living in 
cities.  It's noisy and crowded.

On the plus side, I have rented a car a few times and gotten out to see 
the beautiful countryside.  Even got a little (far too little) hiking in 
on my last trip to the Blue Mountains.  I also saw my first kangaroos in 
the wild.

Meanwhile, back home, my main PC (expecting my return after 1-3 months) 
has dutifully been downloading all of the AT-L traffic since last 
April!  Being bored and rather lonely here, I recently grabbed all of 
that mail off the PC and onto my laptop.  I've spent the past several 
weeks browsing through 2000 emails!  Okay, I didn't read every word, but 
read quite a few.  Tonight, I read the last and am officially 'caught up'.

It may seem silly, but all those posts really brightened many days 
here.  I met several listers at SoRuck 06, but haven't had the 
opportunity to get to know most of you personally.  From the list, 
though, I feel I know many of you!  And I honestly don't know another 
group of people I'd rather spend my time with (okay - my friends form 
the Buckeye Trail Association are on equal footing).

It was tough to read through the recent SoRuck posts.  I really wanted 
to return this year.  Next year for sure!

If anyone is interested, I posted several of my pictures from trips out 
of the city online.  These links should get you to the albums (one has a 
few Sydney pics too).
http://community.webshots.com/album/560908616RkGYRS
http://community.webshots.com/album/560908994knvSeo

And thanks to everyone for bringing a little of the trail to a lonely 
apartment in Sydney!

Steve "Up To Somethin'"